Breaking Free - FS (Completed-Epilogue)

Hey everyone, so like most of you the current track is truly annoying me and so I had to write out something that has been stuck in my head for days. This is my first written piece and I tried my best to include everything we’ve all been dying to see from confrontations to breakdowns to Kairav opening his mouth😁

Also thank you to Illuminatus for being my first reader and encouraging to post💕

So Welcome to the first part of

Breaking Free

1: Breaking Down

Akshara Goenka had suffered through more than her fair share of pain, and although each tragedy had her coming out stronger than before, it also left cracks. Cracks that slowly started covering the entirety of her bruised and battered heart. Along with each crack, she started losing pieces of herself and yet for the sake of her family she glued herself back together and held tightly onto hope.

Hope that one day everything would get better, hope that her family would see her and actually understand her pain, hope that her princess, her Aru would return to her. But right at this moment, she had given up.

She stood defeated, only half hearing Harshvardhan Birla apologize to her family and praise her sister for her falsely claimed heroics, staring blankly at Arohi. Praying her sister hadn’t done what it looked like she had. Praying that the small sliver of hope Arohi had given her today wouldn’t be destroyed so quickly and mercilessly.

Earlier today had her more hopeful than ever that her relationship with her sister could be mended and her promise to Sirat Ma kept.

A ray of hope had hit her hours after their escape when Akshara realized that Arohi had hugged her and shed tears for her. Her heart soared with happiness, her sister, her Aru did care for her and was actually scared for her life. Aru refused to let her enter the fire stricken hut and afterwards had hugged her with relief. That had to mean something didn’t it?

Maybe her near death experience gave her clarity and more reasons to live than anything else ever had. It was for Akshu, a day of epiphanies. Seeing Abhimanyu unconscious, covered in soot caused a fear so intense that for a second she questioned every single decision she’d made since meeting him. She had realized how stupid this whole ‘moving on’ idea was, after all how would she ever truly live and be happy without him.

How and when had a man she barely knew stopped being only a part of her life and become a part of her, she hadn’t ever realized. It was in that fire that could have ended everything, that Akshara promised herself and Abhi that should they survive, she would fight for their relationship. She would fight for Abhi and she would make up for all the of pain she had caused him. After all Zindagi ka kya bharosa, it was too short to spend suffering and yearning for things within your reach.

And between these two epiphanies, her heart beat faster than ever as for the first time in weeks she could see the light at the end of a very dark, haunting tunnel. Maybe it was possible to have both her love and her sister? Maybe almost losing her life had melted Arohis heart finally?

It was with these thoughts running through her mind that she waited with bated breath for her little sister. She would talk to Arohi, make her understand before she gave her full attention to how she would propose and make it up to Abhi. Surely after seeing how much love was there between them, Arohi would not become a barrier and still attempt to win Abhimanyu.

She was also itching to ask about Abhimanyus health. He had to be okay, she had gotten him out and Aru had helped him medically but how had he left without meeting her once? And even now, he hadn’t called her once to check on her? It was so out of character for the caring and protective Abhimanyu she knew. Was he angry? Had he meant it when he said he’d move on now? Was she entirely too late in her realizations?

The storm of thoughts and emotions swirling in her mind and heart were put on pause as she spotted Arohi slowly stepping through the main doors, eyes shifting constantly, hands rubbing together, covered in soot and an expression of arrogance with a tinge of guilt. Seeing her like that had once again brought concern to the forefront of Akshara’s heart.

“Aru tu theek hai na?” Akshara rushed towards her little sister, all the while checking her from head to toe, making sure she was uninjured. Before Arohi could even open her mouth, the whole family gathered in the hall.

“Aap yaha kya kar rahe hai Dr. Birla?” Asked an already agitated Manish Goenka and Akshara finally noticed Abhimanyus Father entering her home. Manish had had enough of these pointless argumentative interactions with the Birlas and constantly hoped each conversation would be the last but here he was yet again. It scared him to think that somehow the fate of the two families who could not ever get along, were connected.

Akshara stared confused between her sister and the father of the man she loved.

Sir, as Abhi called him, seemed different than usual and as he began his speech, every word of it left Akshara feeling more and more disappointed. It wasn’t that Arohi had taken credit for saving Abhimanyus life, Akshara had always given Arohi everything her heart had desired without Arohi ever needing to ask. What broke her heart was that after everything they had gone through today, Arohi had gone right back to plotting and hating her.

As she finally understood the situation, Akshara could feel a tightness in her heart and throat. With the whole family busy with Arohi and Harshvardan, Akshara slowly started backing away. She could feel her breath shallowing out and her heart pounding in her ears.

Away from the group, she finally fell to her knees, gasping for air. It hit her like a truck that no matter what happened, Arohi would never accept her, would never love her the way Akshara loved Arohi. Akshara stuggling to keep her eyes open, wondered whether Arohi would feel even slightly sad had she died in the fire today or whether she would be celebrating her clear path to a loveless marriage with Abhimanyu. She knew despite how her family behaved sometimes that they would mourn her loss deeply before moving on but would Arohi feel even a pinch of regret for how their relationship had turned out?

With her vision blurring and her losing touch with reality she barely noticed arms holding her steady and a worried voice calling out her name.

All she could see was a little Arohi crying and blaming Akshara for the loss of her mother. The image blurred together to then form the sisters, older but still fighting, always fighting. Another quick transition brought her to the day Arohi had caused a big enough scene and Akshara had finally decided to leave the family home for the peace and happiness of her family. Each scene brought more tears and anguish to Aksharas face. Akshara struggled to breath, she struggled to see or hear anything but the heartbreaking truth behind her relationship with the sister she loved so completely. All of a sudden, she could hear a strong but warm hum. Her favourite song, lag ja gale. The hum got louder, stronger and although not musically accurate, it soothed her bruised heart more than the most talented, gifted of voices could.

This time as her visions started fading, she began seeing moments, rather memories that she cherished secretly. She could see how terrified Abhimanyu had been seeing her struggling to breath at the resort. He had rushed to her as fast as possible and dropped to his knees, keeping her head on his shoulder and his arms around her. And despite her terrible state, she had felt safe and cared for. When he had asked what caused her to have an attack so severe, she would have snorted had it not been right after the attack. With him by her side, that was the fastest she had been able to recover ever. She remembered their first proper meeting and proudly stating that she is happy as she is. Her panic attacks, though, were the one thing she would change about herself if she could because as much as she hated suffering through them alone, she would hate to worry her family even more.

But Abhimanyu had managed to make her feel not so weak and certainly not as lonely. Even now, with only his memories he was able to bring a peace to Akshara that she had only ever felt with him nearby. With each memory and the sound of his voice asking her to breath, she could feel herself relaxing more and more.

“Akshu, saas leh bacha, come on Akshu in… and out…” Kairavs voice finally broke through the fog in her brain. Her brothers were always her biggest supports and it was the last push she needed to finally open her teary eyes again and get a hold of herself.

As she looked at her brother she could see how worried he was and she realized what a mess she really was at that moment. Tears trailed down her cheeks and her hair a mess from all the pulling but she couldn’t really care how she looked when she had finally lost hope. She had finally given up on her one dream since childhood. She had finally realized that nothing she did, no matter how much love she would shower on Arohi, it would make no difference. She took a deep breath, calming herself enough to be able to talk as Kairav wiped the tears running down her face with his handkerchief.

“Bhaiya, haar gayi main aur jeet gayi Arohi ki nafrat. Aaj samaj mein agaya ki Arohi ke liye mein kuch bhi karu, jiyun ya maru, usse koi farq nahi parega. Uske zid ke samne mera pyar haar gaya…” she sighed taking deep breaths to replenish her lungs of the sustenance it had been deprived of.

Kairav shook his head and sighed and pulled Akshu into a warm hug. He knew this day would come. His sisters had only one thing in common and it was their zid. Despite Arohis zid of breaking any relationship with Akshara, it was Aksharas zid that had kept this relation hanging by a thread. But no matter how hard a person tries, no relationship can work if only one person is making efforts.

Akshara had reached her limit as Kairav knew she would one day and as upset as Kairav was to see the deteriorating equation between his sisters, he was almost happy and hopeful that perhaps now Akshara could learn to live for herself.

“Akshu, kya hua aaj camp mein? Abhimanyu ki jaan khatre mein ho aur tum kuch na karo, yeh main manne ko tayar nahi hu.” Asked Kairav in an attempt to understand the situation. It was important to know what had happened to finally break the last thread holding his sisters together.

Akshu, in almost a trance starting explaining the accident. How she had noticed the fire and connected the missing children. How Arohi refused to let her in the hut to save the children and how Abhimanyu had stopped her and entered the hut himself.

“Bachon ke nikalne ke baad jab Abhimanyu nahi aaya toh aisa laga jaisi aag mein woh nahi, main fasee thi. Usse kaise kuch hone de sakti thi kyun ki agar usse kuch ho jata toh main bhi nahi bachti.” Akshara remembering that moment, could feel the same fear she had felt while she stood in front of the hut yelling out for Abhimanyu.

Seeing the expression on Aksharas face reminded him of how readily she faced her humiliation just to save his reputation and career and this was his life they were talking about. Kairav could only imagine how fiercely his tiny sister would have fought the fire to save her love.

“Arohi ki rokne ke bawajud bhi main ander gayi aur kisi na kisi tarah Abhimanyu ko bacha liya. Bahar sabse pehle Arohi hi mili aur uski parwa dekh maine uski baat maan li ki mujhe kahi aur bhetna chahiye, duah se door. Abhimanyu phir bhi behosh tha toh maine Arohi ko uske paas bhej diya usse dekhne.” Akshara sighed and took another deep breath. The day had been exhausting and it wasn’t even close to being done.

“Mujhe nahi pata tha ki woh is baat ka fayda utayegi bhaiya. Hum waha aag mein maar sakte te lekin Arohi per iss baat ka zara bhi asar nahi hua.” She whispered the last bit while finally looking Kairav straight in the eyes.

“Usse ab bhi sirf mujhe harana hai, mujhse mera sab kuch cheen na hai. Aur ab toh main bhi thak gayi hu usse samjha kar. Bura toh is baat ka lag raha hai ki Sirat Ma se kiya hua waada nahi nibha payi.”

Kairav didn’t know who to be more upset at. Akshara for running into a burning hut knowing that her family had faced enough loss to last them a lifetime or Arohi for not realizing what her decisions were leading to. In the end all Kairav could do was chuckle sadly as he remembered their parents, especially his Naira mumma. Akshu was so much like her that sometimes he felt like a terrible brother to Arohi for having a special corner in his heart especially dedicated to Akshu.

“Akshu, tum dono se zyada main jaanti hu Ma ko. Aur yakeen kar unhe tumpar and tumhari mehnat par garv hota. Aur woh yeh toh bilkul nahi chahti ki tu Aru keliye apni haar khushi qurban karde. Ulta agar woh yaha hoti toh woh khud Aru ko samjati.” Kairav gave Akshu a meaningful look as Akshu lowered her eyes and wished her Sirat Ma was here. This had been a point of conflict for years between the two.

“Itne saalon se tujhe yahi toh samjhane ki khoshish kar raha tha. Bachpan se aaj tak tu Aru ki har batameezi bardasht kar rahi hai. Na khud usse kuch bolti ho na mujhe bolne dete ho.” Kairav turned and grabbed Akshus hand between both of his.

“Tujhe Arohi ko dard dena manzoor nahi tha isiliye bachpan mein hum sabse larkar tumne yeh faisla kiya tha ki Arohi ko uski nani ke bhare mein koi taane nahi marega aur na hi sachayi batayega. Aur na hi koi usse tum dono ke beech ke problems ko lekar daatega. Ab toh sabne is bhareme sochna bhi band kardiya. Par kab tak Arohi ko bachate rahegi. Issi baat ka toh woh fayda utha thi hai aur tu usse uthane deti hai.” Kairav hoped this would be the end of this. It was important to show Arohi the mirror if they wanted any chance for Arohi to mature and reform.

“Acha, Arohi ki baat thori der keliye chorte hai. Ek baat batau tujhe?” He finally broke his silence and smiled a little. Pulling Akshara to the wall, the siblings sat beside each other, resting their backs.

Akshara, exhausted both mentally and physically could only nod.

“Aaj jo hua, sunkar Papa aur Mumma ki yaad aagaye.”

Mumma, Akshara thought. She had heard many stories and seen many home movies about her mumma, Naira Goenka. Despite not having her memories, she sometimes truly wished she was able to know her and spend more time with her. She wished she was strong enough and smart enough to handle her relationships as wisely as her Mumma had. This thought was often quickly followed with guilt as she realized what that would mean for her Sirat ma. She closed her eyes in guilt and leaned her head on her brothers shoulder.

Kairav continued, “Jis din humare saath woh hadsa hua tha na, Papa ne bhi Mumma ko bachane ke liye apne jaan khatre mein dalkar unhe bachaya tha. Dono bus se nikal hi chuke the ki last moment par…” Kairav could see everything happening in front of his eyes as he spoke.

It had been years but the pain of losing his most favourite person had not lessened and he didn’t think it ever would. It had become a part of him now. A part that only grew as he continued to lose his father and Sirat ma too.

“Papa ne Mumma ko bachane keliye ghirti bus char gaye, aur Mumma ne Papa ko bachane keliye unhe aage push kiya aur khud… aur sirf itna hi nahi. Aisi bahot saare yaadien hai jaha unka ek dusre keliye pyar ko dekh kar sab hairan ho jate. Akshu aisa pyar har kisi ke naseeb mein nahi hota hai. Aur agar kismat se mil bhi jaye toh usse kaske pakarna chahiye.”

Akshara knew this would be coming. Since Kairav had come to know about the intensity of her feelings during the court case, he had constantly been asking her to rethink her decision. Hearing about the love her parents shared had only strengthened her resolve to fight for her relationship with Abhi. Akshara finally smiled, albeit a little one but it was enough for Kairav to understand.

“Aag mein jab woh fasa tha, tab hi mujhe ehsaas hua ki main kitna galat kar rahi hu uske saath. Aur usse behosh dekh kar maine wada kiya tha ki agar hum bach gaye toh apne liye na sahi par uske liye zaroor larungi. Zindagi ka koi bharosa nahi hota, hai na bhaiya aur aaj usse kuch ho jaata toh usse hamesha aisa lagta ki mere liye uski koi ehmiyet nahi hai jab ki sach yeh hai ki jitna pyar woh mujhse karta hai utna hi main bhi usse karti hu.” Akshara felt so light, finally accepting and announcing her feelings out loud. She wondered if this was how Abhimanyu felt every time he openly declared his feelings for her.

“Ab hui na baath. Mujhe to lagta hai Abhimanyu khushi se pagal hone wala hai, tujhe kya lagta hai Akshu?” Despite the current situation Kairav couldn’t help but tease his little sister.

It had been so long since he had seen a genuine smile on Aksharas face, so long since she had done something only for her own happiness. Kairav would support anything that kept Akshara happy like this.

Aksharas smile grew as she blushed. Her smile disappeared and she turned to look at her brother, wanting his honest opinion on the matter.

“Aaj camp mein jo hua, usse mujhe thori si umeed mili thi ki Arohi aur meri beech sab theek ho sakta hai bhaiya lekin jis tarah se woh umeed toote hai, bahot taklif, bahot dard hua mujhe…ab samaj mein aaraha hai ki Abhimanyu ko kaisa laga hoga haar baar.” She sighed painfully before continuing.

“Main khud ko uski madad karne se rok nahi payi lekin yeh toh socha nahi ki haar madad ke saath uski kitni umeede jaagi hongi aur maine khud kitni baar uski umeed ko thora hai… woh mujhe maaf to karega na bhaiya?”, Akshara asked worriedly.

All of a sudden a thought entered her mind and she stared at Kairav with so much fear that automatically had Kairav stop his reply and fear what was to come.

Superb Alia... Loved it ❤

OMG!

This is so so so beautiful, I have no words.

You are an amazing writer.

I Love every word, the concept... your writing.. everything.

Amazing loved it 💕💕pls continue 😊

Loved it so much Alia… I wish in the show also this had happened… the feelings you brought out, the conversations… everything was so beautiful. It brought so many emotions out of me. Please continue. Update soon.

Thank you everyone for the likes & comments! It is super long but I hope I could do justice to the confrontation scene😊

Breaking Barriers

Akshara started mumbling to herself as she quickly dried her face of any lingering tears, patted down her hair and stood, racing back to where her family all sat having tea with Harshvardhan. A little in shock at the scene, Akshara searched for Arohi only to find her coming down the stairs clear of any soot and in a fresh outfit.

Arohi, extremely happy at the turn of events had taken extra care to look nice especially knowing Harshvadhan Birla, her soon to be father in law was still here.

Luck and fate was on her side and no matter what, she would get what she wanted as she always did, she gloated in her mind as she rejoined the family with a smile.

Just as she was about to sit, she felt an arm forcibly turn her around and bring her face to face with her sister or rather her beloved stepsister.

For a moment she feared her game was up. Seeing the almost crazy look on her sisters face had her worried about the future she and her luck had been working towards.

But then she remember that this was Akshara and she would never open her mouth and never cause drama. Perfect little daughter that she always pretended to be would never knowingly hurt the family. This facade often frustrated Arohi because she could not bare to see Akshara gain everyones love and attention.

But she would play along, for the sake of her future and her victory over her, she would definitely play along.

“Ouch, Akshu sambhal ke. Kya hua hai tujhe?” Crooned Arohi in fake concern.

Akshara, looking at the happy faces of her family, and the worried face of Kairav, in the last second decided to pulled her to the side.

“Abhimanyu ko mere bhare mein kya bataya hai tumne?!” Whispered Akshara. She did not want to cause a scene in front of everyone, in front of Harshvardhan Birla but seeing Arohis “concerned” face change to one of fear and arrogance, she knew there would be one no matter what she did. Today, though would be different, today for the first time in years Akshara would not back down.

“Kya matlab hai tumhara?” Arohi almost yelled. “Main Abhimanyu ko tumhare bhare mein kyun kuch bolungi? Aur Abhimanyu kyun tumhare bhare mein kuch poochega?” She taunted glaringly.

The yelling had brought the entire family around the girls to see what the ruckus was. Everything was fine moments ago, what had happened to once again cause such a scene at the Goenka mansion.

“Enough!” Manish yelled in his stern voice. “Akshara, Arohi yeh kya ho raha hai. Tum dono kya ek bhi din bina jagra kiye nahi reh sakte? Aaj ke liye itna drama kahfi hai. Jao apne kamre mein tum dono!” He ordered without even taking a moment to understand the situation.

Akshara continued to glare at Arohi. She had made up her mind to fight for her love and now nothing not even Bada papa would be able to stop her. She opened her mouth to apologize for disobeying but before she could she heard another voice.

“Nahi Bade Papa. Aaj inn dono ko koi nahi rokega. Aaj inki beech koi bhi nahi bolega” declared Kairav while giving everyone a look as if to warn them. And as everyone stared worriedly at the two sisters, Kairav made his way to Harshvardhan who continued to look at Akshara with disdain for constantly being the cause of every problem.

“Uncle apka bhi yaha rehna zaroori hai. Ab yaha jo hoga uska apke pariwar par bhi asar hoga aur aap sabka sach jaana bhi zaroori hai” Kairav requested to a confused looking harshvardhan, who replied in a nod.

The two girls continued to glare at each other. Arohi daring Akshara to open her mouth and Akshara challenging Arohi to lie.

“Arohi, main shanti se puch rahi hu, kya kaha tumne Abhimanyu ko mere bhare mein? Jooth bolni ki himat bhi mat kar kyun ke main tujhe bhi ache se janti hu aur Abhimanyu ko bhi. Hosh aate hi usne mere bhare mein pucha hoga. Agar “tumne” usse aag se bachaya tha toh main kaha thi Arohi?” Akshara stressed out “tumne” letting Arohi know her lie would not last.

Arohi had never seen Akshara as she was now. She had never seen Akshara fighting her in such a manner and realizing her gig was over she started yelling defensively. She had expected Akshara to bow down to her wishes as always. Arohi had expected an easy win but this? This was going to be her end and yet she would not go down easily either. Her trump card always worked, always had akshara backing down when she got too strong and she prayed it would work today too.

“Tum phir se mujhse sab kuch cheen na chahte ho na? Tumse meri khushi dikhi nahi jaati. Pehle meri ma ko cheena aur aaj yeh sab karke mujhse mera pyaar cheen rahe ho? Kaisi behen ho tum? Sauteli ho na isliye meri khushi bardasht nahi hoti tumse!” Arohi cried loudly trying to guilt Akshara into submission and gain the sympathy of her family.

What she didn’t know was that Akshara had finally accepted the end of their relationship and would no longer bow down to her emotional dramas. What she also didn’t realize was that Kairav refused to let anyone speak between them.

“BAS KAR AROHI GOENKA!” Akshara exploded back. Years of pain trembling through her voice.

“Sautela pan maine nahi, hamesha TUMNE dikhayi hai! Cheen na maine nahi TUMNE hai! Meri har cheez, meri har khushi, pariwar ke sath mera waqt aur yaha tak ke meri kiye hue kaamo ki credit lekin ab bas bahot hua.” Akshara took a step forward, staring right into Arohis eyes and continued in clear and steady voice.

“Ab mein tumhe aur kuch cheene nahi dungi. Ab jo mera hai woh mera hi rahega chahe uske liye mujhe tujhse larna hi kyun pare. Aur kya pucha tume? Kaisi behen hu main? Toh aaj main sabki samne tumhari aage apni akhri haar manti hu. Tera mujhse rishta todne ki zid jeet gaye aur mera Sirat Ma ko diya waada haar gaya. Khush!” Aksharas declaration shocked everyone in the family. Akhilesh stepped forward to defend his favourite Arohi but Kairav once again held him back shaking his head.

“AG yeh hona zaroori hai please!” Whispered an agitated Kairav. Why don’t the adults understand how important it is for both girls to get rid of years worth of pain and anger, he thought sadly.

“Ab tujhe jo karna hai karle, mere bhare mein jo sochna hai sochle, lekin mujhe sach sach suna hai ki tumne Abhimanyu ko kya bataya hai? Aur jitna main tujhe jaanti hu asani se guess kar sakti hu ki yeh tera pehla jhoot to nahi hoga. Toh aaj kulke batao aur kis kis bhare mein jhooth bola hai tumne?” Akshara repeated sternly.

Arohi was at a loss for words. She had never anticipated Akshara standing up to her but she had also never anticipated Akshara facing death so closely.

“Mai..maine koi jhooth nahi kaha hai. Mein kyun jhooth bolungi?” Arohi tried her luck again stumbling for words.

Akshara had had enough. She refused to care about Arohi anymore but she had to know what evil lies she had planted in Abhimanyus head. There was no way that Abhimanyu would not call her after the day they’ve had. Even if she had not been the one to save him, the Abhimanyu she knew would have called her at least once just to make sure she was alright.

She looked around at the faces of her family. She knew this was hurting each and every one of them but she was tired of putting herself and her emotions in the backseat. As she spotted her phone, she remembered the trick she used to outsmart Ruby. She turned to see Arohi almost trembling and so so anxious. It would only take a small nudge just as it had with Ruby.

“Thik hai,” she said sighing and she turned to pick up her phone off the coffee table.

“Tumhe nahi batana hai toh main seedha Abhimanyu se hi puchta hu. Gusse mein hi sahi lekin jawab toh milega” she stated while pretending to dial Abhimanyu.

No! Arohi thought! Abhimanyu could not get involved! He would hate her and she would lose before she could even get him on her side. She could feel the pressure building up inside her. As she stared at her family members, she realized that no one would step up in her defence or rather Kairav bhaiya wouldn’t let anyone to interfere.

As Akshara lifted the phone to her ear, she exploded and screamed in anger, “BAS KAR AKSHARA. Bahot ho gaya. Kya jaana hai tumhe huh? Haan maine jhoot bhola hai, bahot jhoot bhola hai aur haar baar sab meri baat mante rahe. Pata hai kyun? Kyun ki Abhimanyu meri kismat mein hai, woh mera hai! Tumhara nahi samji!” She yelled hysterically as she walked closer to Akshara.

Akshara sighed in relief and in sadness, her plan had worked but it still hurt her to see her little sister so lost in anger and in her ego. She placed her phone in her pocket and stared right into Arohis eyes making sure her every word was heard by Arohi.

“Abhimanyu koi cheez nahi hai jo tumhari kehne par tumhara hojayega, nahi woh koi taufa ya trophy hai jise mein chor kar tujhe de sakhu. Arohi woh ek insaan hai. Uski apni marzi hai, uski apni pasand hai aur bhale hi tujhe woh pasand ho lekin usne kabhi bhi tujhe us nazron se nahi dekha. Tu samajhti kyun nahi! “ Akshara tried again to make Arohi understand but without success.

“Akshara tu samajhti nahi hai! Main usse pyar karti hu aur kismat bhi humein milana chahti hai! Tu hi har baar beech mein aajati hai.” She glared at Akshara before pacing restlessly, anxiously trying to get her point across.

She wasn’t wrong, she couldn’t be wrong. Fate had helped her so much and it had to be because they belonged together.

“Dekh tune toh rishte keliye mana kar diya na! Phir uske baad bhar bhar Abhimanyu aur uske family ke samne kismat mujhe laati rahi. Court hearing se pehli Manjari Aunty mujhe mili thi aur unhone mujhse kaha ki main tumhe gavai dene ke liye manau. Tu toh pehle hi gavai dene ke liye jha chuki thi lekin phir bhi baad mein Abhimanyu ne mujhe thanks kaha usse bachane ke liye! Phir tune aunty ke health keliye pooja rakhi ti na mandir main? Waha bhi pooja ke baad Pandit ji ne thali mujhe dedi and kismat ka khel dekho! Ussi waqt waha Abhimanyu bhi tha aur usse laga ki pooja maine karwayi. Aur aaj! Aaj toh matlab had hi hogaye! Aag mein tu kudi lekin jab Abhimanyu utha toh usse laga maine usse bachaya! Yeh kismat nahi toh aur kya hai Akshara! Har baat ke liye Abhimanyu ke samne mera naam aata gaya! Jab kismat humein saath lana chahti hai toh tu beech mein kyun aarahe hai!?” Arohi stopped her pacing to direct her last question to Akshara.

Arohi, lost in her rant failed to notice the baffled expressions on the faces of everyone in the room. So much had happened right under their noses and none of them knew a thing? Had they failed in raising Arohi so much that she refused to see anything but what her own mind had created?

Especially shocked was Harshvardan Birla. His son was right all along. This little chit of a girl loved his son more than anything, more than her own life. His anger was justified for she had rejected him, but Harshvardan could no longer deny the deep, all encompassing love the two shared.

He also felt ashamed of the way he had been treating the girl who had saved his son not once but multiple times, the girl who did so much for his family without expecting anything, not even acknowledgement. He could not believe how terrible he was at judging people but he was at least happy for his son. He was brought back to reality with Aksharas calm and clear voice.

“You don’t love him Arohi!” She stated tiredly. Her throat was starting to hurt. She had refused to see a doctor despite the length of time she had spent trapped in the smoke and fire, she had bigger concerns then but right now, it seemed as though the day was catching up to her.

“Ab tum mujhe bataogi ki main kya feel karti hu ya nahi?” Grumbled Arohi. She could not believe this!

“Tujhe tujhse behter janti hu Arohi. Tune kabhi mujhe samajne ki khoshish nahi ki magar mere liye tujhse pehle koi nahi tha…”

“Oh please! Ab tum sabke samne yeh dikhana chahte ho ke tume kitni achi ho aur main kitni buri..” Arohi interupted in anger.

Exasperated at how difficult her little sister could be, Akshara just pulled at her hair and let out a little scream. She couldn’t do this anymore…this argument, although eye-opening was not getting her anywhere. All she wanted to know was what lie Arohi had spread now. It had be terrible if Abhimanyu was hurt enough not to enquire about her after a fire.

“Tujhe jo sochna hai, tu soch sakti hai. Mujhe aaj ke baad isse koi farq nahi parta” replied Akshara with a heavy heart, “mujhe bas itna jaana hai ki tune Abhimanyu se aaj kya kaha. Baki sare raaz toh khol hi chuki, yeh bhi bata de aur khatam kar humare beech ke saare baatien.”

Arohi startled as she finally realized that she herself had announced to everyone all her deeds. As she looked at everyones diappointed and angry faces, she knew she needed a plan, a way to get back into everyones good books.

Uhggg this akshara, always ruining my life! Thought Arohi as she started tearing up.

“Maine yeh sab apne pyar ko paane ke liye kiya hai. Aur maine koi jhoot nahi bhola, bas sab ko misunderstanding hoti gayi ki yeh maine kiya hai…” she cried out.

“Bas kar Arohi! Akshu ne jo pucha uska jawab de!” Kairav came to stand beside Akshara, happy to finally be able to support Akshara the ways he always wanted to.

Seeing everyone side with Akshara brought so much hatred in Arohis eyes as she finally gave up and revealed her final act of deceit.

“Tumne mujhse haar cheez cheena hai na? Aaj toh mera pariwar bhi mujhe galat samajhti hai tumhari wajah se toh maine bhi Abhimanyu ko cheena tujhse. Sahi kaha tha tumne, usse hosh aate hi usne tumhare bhare mein pucha. Aur maine bhi mauka dekh kar usse bata diya ki tu chali gayi waha se. Usse aag mein chor kar chali gayi! Khush!” Arohi screeched.

Everyone was stunned in silence. It was clear as daylight how much Abhimanyu loved Akshara and they could only imagine how much pain he would be in while thinking Akshara had not even cared that he was trapped in the fire.

Akshara stumbled backwards only to be caught by a worried Kairav, “Akshu sambhal khudko! Abhi toh tujhe Abhimanyu ko bhi sach batana hai, saari confusion clear karna hai” whispered Kairav.

“Mujhe jaa na hai bhaiya, jald se jald Abhimanyu ke paas jaa na hai. Kitna hurt hoga woh?” Mumbled Akshara as more tears started to form in her eyes.

She had already hurt him so much and now this? Akshara knew how it felt when the person you cared for the most didn’t care at all whether you lived or died and she refused to let Abhimanyu believe this.

As she started to run towards the doors, she was stopped by Harshvardan.

“Chalo mein tumhe le jata hu Abhimanyu ke paas.” Harshvardan wanted this chance to right his wrongs but seeing Akshara shaking her head he wondered if he ever could.

“Nahi Uncle, galat mat samajhiyga lekin ghadi mein bahot time lagega, mujhe jald se jald pohoncha hai…” she turned again towards Kairav

“ bhaiya please, Mumma ki bike lejau? Promise sambhal ke jaungi, please bhaiya!” And Kairav who could not refuse her plea, nodded.

Getting the keys Akshara race out, followed by Harshvardhan.

Watching Akshara run out had kairavs heart pounding in fear. His Akshu was drained physically, mentally and emotionally. He prayed she would be safe on her journey but knew he would not be able to stop her today and with that he turned his attention to his youngest sister. It was finally time to set some things straight.

“Bhaiya aap bhi uski side ho? Haar baar usse hi sab kuch kyun milta hai? Sab log usse mujhse zyada pyaar karte hai. Aur aaj usne mujhse Abhimanyu ka pyaar bhi cheen liya. It’s not fair!” Cried a devastated Arohi.

“Nahi Arohi” stated Kairav calmly but sternly, “what’s not fair is how you’ve been treating Akshara til now. Aaj sab ke samne tujhe sachayi ka samna karna hi parega! Galat Akshara nahi hai aur na kabhi thi. Galat teri soch hai aur shayad hum sab bhi galat the tujhse yeh sab chupane ke liye.”

Arohi didn’t understand what Kairav meant. What was there that she didn’t know? Akshara was always given more importance, be it in the matter of her mother or grandmother. Arohis Nani was never even mentioned unless it was to taunt her for it. She was the laadli of the house and loved no matter what she did. Meanwhile Arohi had to work much harder to get the best marks and bring home trophies in order to get some attention.

“Jab se tujhe pata chala hai ki Sirat Ma humari janam dene wali Ma nahi hai, tu koi na koi baat dhoond hi leeti ho Akshu se larne ke liye. Hum sabne dekha. Jab choti thi toh apni Nani ko lekar hum sab se larni lagi. Pata kya hai tujhe apni Nani ke bhare mein?” Asked Kairav.

Arohi stood shocked and devastated as Kairav continued to narrate how her Nani had abandoned her Mumma and started a new family. How her Nani had selfishly demanded money on the day of her parents and attempted multiple tricks in order to stop their wedding. And perhaps most shocking of all was how her Nani and her husband were responsible for the near death experience her Father had faced before her birth. Had she seriously misunderstood the whole situation thought Arohi?

“Aur tu yeh kaise bhool gayi ki main bhi Sirat Ma ka khoon nahi hu? Mere liye itna pyaar aur izzat, aur Akshu ke liye itni nafrat? Yeh bhet bhaav kyun?”

Kairav would not stop until everything was off his chest today. He continued to explain every sacrifice Akshara had made to ensure Arohis happiness, every battle Akshara had fought on behalf of Arohi and as he neared the end he could see how affected Arohi appeared to be by the truth. To drive the truth straight into Arohis heart, Kairav decided to end his speech with the current situation.

“Akshu sach keh rahi thi Aru. Tujhe Abhimanyu se pyaar nahi hai, na kabhi tha. Pyaar mein dil ka istemal hota hai dimag ka nahi. Pyaar mein profession, status, looks, yeh sab nahi dekha jata.”

Kairav had heard Arohis “best ko best” wala speech enough times to know that Arohi didn’t truly care for Abhimanyu as more than a trophy.

“ Haan shayad thora sa attraction tha joh Abhimanyu aur Akshara ki bhare mein pata chalne ki baad tumhara zid banchuka tha. Tu bachpan se yeh hi toh karti aa rahi hai. Apna gift chorkar, tujhe hamesha Akshu ka gift chahiye tha, phir chahe woh khilona ho ya kapre. Kab aisa karna teri aadat bangaye tujhe khud pata nahi chala.” Kairav sighed, Akshara was partly to blame here too. He had tried so hard to make her understand not to agree to Arohis every whim but Akshara, bound to Sirat Ma’s promise could not say no to Arohi.

Kairav looked around the room and could see everyone repenting for the way they had behaved. They had spoiled Arohi and unknowingly neglected Akshara. It wasn’t that one was loved more than the other, but Arohi was more demanding of both their time and attention while Akshara always chose to step back. As the adults in the house, they had failed to both find a balance between the girls and reconcile their differences. How would their relationships change from this point was the question on everyones mind.

“Aru, dar toh is baat ka hai ki kahi joh pyaar tera tha hi nahi usse paane ke chakar mein, tune uss pyaar ko koh na diya ho joh bachpan se tera tha.” Kairav had said all he could and after a final glance at Arohi, he turned to walk away.

Arohi could not believe everything she had heard. How had she misunderstood everything so much, how had hatred and jealousy blinded her to the point where she couldn’t see the true love and adoration her older sister had for her. In a trance, her mind now seeing her life in a new light, Arohi slowly walked to her room. In her zid she had truly lost everything, her sister’s love, her family's respect and now her peace of mind.

Beautiful!

Cant wait for Abhira confrontation!

Please update sooonish❤️

Originally posted by: slan

Beautiful!

Cant wait for Abhira confrontation!

Please update sooonish❤️

shouldn’t be too long! Have a clear idea of how I want it to go so just need to pen it down! Thank you💕💕

Woah.... The cat is out of the bag

Can't wait for AbhiRa's confrontation in next update

Fab update Alia❤

Lovely... Did Akshara 's call get connected... Abhimanyu ne saari baatein sun li kya